Seattle man Andrew Hartung, 34, is facing charges of sexually exploiting a 12 year-old boy â and is also suspected of âsoliciting nude photos from other young boysâ â using two of the worldâs biggest video games.
Hartung â who has previously been convicted of possessing a child pornography collection â befriended the boy across both Minecraft and League of Legends, but detectives have identified at least two other boys he had been communicating with across the games as well.
Having sent him gifts, Hartung is accused of then trying to arrange to meet the boy in Colorado.
The boy thought he had met a new âbest friendâ, until action by another boyâs parents revealed who Hartung really was.
Hartung was required by law to declare his prior sex offender conviction, but had failed to do so and had been living âwithout registrationâ since 2002.
âSince that time, the defendant has groomed children across state lines via the Internet enticing them with expensive gifts, electronics, money and cigarettes in exchange for photographs of their genitals,â Senior Deputy Prosecutor Cecelia Gregson says.
âOf note,â she adds, â[Hartung] was residing in an apartment complex brimming with children â one he would not likely have been able to reside at if he had complied with his obligation to register as a sex offender.â
Reminder: if youâve got kids, educate them on online communication.
Charge: Kirkland sex offender lured boys gaming online [SeattlePI]
